Bangkok safe from floods

This aerial picture shows a temple surrounded by flood waters in the ancient capital city of Ayutthaya, north of Bangkok, on October 16, 2011. Flood defenses protecting the Thai capital held up on October 16, but the advancing waters that have swamped the inland still threaten to engulf Bangkok in a disaster that has claimed 300 lives. Thailand's worst floods in decades have inundated huge swathes of the kingdom, swallowing homes and businesses, shutting down industry, and forcing tens of thousands of people to seek refuge in shelters.

Credit:

CHRISTOPHE ARCHAMBAULT

Bangkok’s barriers stood strong against Thailand’s floods on Sunday, as the government was confident the city would be protected, the Associated Press reports.

Thailand’s worst floods in half a century were held back by barriers, fueling hopes that Bangkok, with a population of 9 million could escape without a drop of water, the AP reports.

Agriculture Minister Theera Wongsamut said there were "good signs" that water levels on the city's key Chao Phraya river would rise no higher, according to the BBC. Volunteers spent days filling sandbags and draining canals to protect homes, BBC reports.

“A large amount of water from the north flowed past Bangkok to the Gulf of Thailand yesterday," said Wongsamut, BBC reports.

But while the capital is safe, thousands in areas outside of it are displaced and struggling to survive in towns filled with water. The AP reports that military rescued terrified civilians from rooftops of flooded buildings in Ayutthaya, the city hit hardest by the floods.

Due to months of monsoon rains, entire villages have been submerged and more than 280 people have been killed since the flooding started in late July, BBC reports.

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